A FRIENDLY atmosphere, great pub grub and an open fire made my visit to The James Figg in Thame a very happy one.

The pub is nestled in the High Street of the pretty town of Thame and we arrived on a busy Sunday afternoon.

It has an old fashioned feel with a modern twist- there are bright colours dotted around with red walls at the back, blue seats at the front and colourful photo frames filled with sports pictures and happy slogans.

We sat next to the open fire which was smouldering away in comfy, high back leather chairs.

A trio of enthusiastic, if not slightly sloshed, punters sat next to us raved about the pub saying it was the best in town- praising the food and staff.

The menu is kept pretty simple, which is what bosses want. They offer a range of bar snacks and sandwiches- including a hot roast bap of the day- as well as pizzas, burgers and classics such as roast and pies.

They also have a simple wine list and a selection of ales, as well as the usual drinks.

There are no starters here- so it was straight into the main event. I went for the Famous James Figg Burger (£7.50), with a topping of bacon and onion rings (both 50p each extra). It was quite possibly one of the best burgers I have ever tried- the beef was well seasoned, great quality and had that flame grilled taste.

It was served with a moreish burger sauce, fresh salad leaves and tomatoes in a sesame seed bun.

The bacon was crispy- which I was delighted by- and the onion rings were huge and covered in a crispy batter. The onions could have been cooked slightly longer as they were a bit crisp. The chips had their skins on and were served in a paper bag- they tasted like chip shop chips but not too greasy. They were delicious. It was all served on an enamel tin plate, which I thought was a nice touch.

My boyfriend, Tom, went for the Roast chicken, rocket and chilli pizza (£8).

It was so nice to see the roasted variety on a pizza instead of the processed chicken you can sometimes see, which meant the meat was tender and flavoursome. The rocket was spread liberally on top and the chilli added a good amount of heat for Tom, who loves spicy food.

There was a healthy layer of tomato and cheese on a crispy base, which made for a great pizza.

With a little room left for pudding there was a choice of two- sticky toffee pudding and chocolate brownie sundae.

The sundae was divine- with gooey warm chocolate brownie at the bottom, topped with creamy chocolate and vanilla ice cream and lavished with cream.

The brownie was so well done- it was sweet and gooey- and was a lovely treat.

Tom had the sticky toffee pudding, which was a rectangle of moist sponge and a lovely toffee sauce with Baileys cream. He polished it off in moments.

I really like the ethos of the pub- it is kept quite simple but the food they do, they do very well. It is a great place to while away the afternoon in a relaxed, pub atmosphere topped off with delicious, home made food. Go to www.thejamesfiggthame.co.uk for more details.